28 October 2005

Like Minds, Like Mine campaign wins another award

A television and radio advertising campaign aimed at changing public attitudes and behaviour towards people with mental illness has won a silver award at the New Zealand advertising industry awards.

The Ministry of Health's Like Minds, Like Mine campaign won the silver for Sustained Success in advertising at the EFFIE (Effective in Advertising) awards held in Auckland on Thursday evening (October 27).

Entrants in the competitive Sustained Success category had to show the ongoing success of their campaigns over three years or more.

Like Minds, Like Mine National Project Manager, Gerard Vaughan says, "It is great to win something in this category because sustaining success over a long period of time is key to the aims of the project."

"This award is recognition of the work carried out by a lot of people around New Zealand over several years. They include FCB Advertising Agency, the Like Minds advertising advisory group, Phoenix Research and all the people with personal experience of mental illness who, through their involvement in the project have made significant changes to public attitudes."

The Like Minds, Like Mine advertising campaign has been running for five years and features well known New Zealanders talking about mental illness. Research has shown that the campaign is making a significant and positive difference to the way people view mental illness.

This is the fourth time the Like Minds, Like Mine campaign has won an award for the work it is doing.

Mary O'Hagan a New Zealand Mental Health Commissioner and also a member of the Like Minds, Like Mine advertising advisory group says, "Mental health problems have been hidden and not talked about for many years, so it is long overdue and pleasing to see that the public is getting its head around something that is quite a common part of some people's life experience."

"I think the way people who have been public about their personal experience of mental illness has been key to this success."

"The ultimate success will be when all people who have experienced a mental health problem feel that they will not be discriminated against as a result of this being known. I think that there is still some distance to go to achieve this, but New Zealand is making good progress, and I think the advertising is contributing significantly to this."

The Like Minds, Like Mine project was set up to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness, using a range of strategies including advertising, working with the media, education, looking at policy and practice within organisations and addressing discrimination when it occurs. The key to success in all these strategies is the leadership of people with mental illness who challenge people's myths and stereotypes.

Research as part of the Like Minds, Like Mine project shows that acceptance of people with mental illness increased between 1997 and 2004. Respondents' acceptance of someone with mental illness working for them increased from 61 percent to 75 percent. Respondents' willingness to accept someone with mental illness as a workmate increased from 69 percent to 80 percent.

Respondents' acceptance of someone with mental illness as a baby-sitter increased from 12 to 21 percent. Respondents' acceptance of someone with mental illness as a next-door neighbour increased from 55 to 66 percent.

For more information about the Like Minds, Like Mine Project, visit the website www.likeminds.govt.nz

ENDS